Frozen water on a plant with the Léman in the background
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Running In High Winds

Byrichard
Reading Time: 2 minutes

Yesterday I tried running and walking in high winds. I have cycled and walked in high winds but I had not yet had the sensation of running in high wind and it is quite interesting. In cycling you feel that the wind pushes your bike to the side, and you counteract the wind.

With running in high wind I found that if I ran with the wind then my body behaved as a sail and I could feel the wind pushing me faster than usual. Of course the legs and cardiovascular system need to keep up. It’s when you turn perpendicular to the wind that it becomes interesting. As the feet lift the ground the wind pushes them laterally so that the right foot bangs into the left leg. I had to avoid tripping.

wind speed and weather information
wind speed and weather information

According to Strava the wind speed was 40km/h. According to Garmin the wind speed reached 59 kilometres per hour. Coping with the cold is the second challenge. In such conditions you want to be dressed warmly. The more of you is covered, the warmer you remain.

Before the run I went to take video of the waves by the lake. I got hit by a few waves and my core body temperature fell. I then went for a slow walk where I could really feel the cold again. I didn’t expect to run. I was cold. Staying home made more sense.

I ran. I expected I would turn around and give up. I didn’t. I turned and my back was to the wind, and that’s when the wind eventually started to push me forwards and I had to fight it from pushing me too fast. Usually I reach a river, I run beyond it, and then I run down to the village and continue from there.

Yesterday I reached the running goal, and turned to head home. That’s when I turned into the wind, and had to walk into it. I stepped forward, but sometimes I had no inertia due to the force of the wind. I had to wait for the wind to slow, before being able to continue my walk.

This was the type of wind where only eccentric people, and dog walkers, walk. It’s the type of weather where you want to be wrapped in layers and protect as much as possible from the cold wind. I had a cagoule and a cap. I tilted my head downwards, and used the visor to protect myself from the wind, and to prevent it from blowing off.

I will leave you with this: an article about the consequences of the high winds.

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The Tiny House movement and travel

Byrichard

The Tiny House Movement and travel combine well together. In this video a Czech couple bought a fan and transformed it into a self contained home to live in for a year. They chose it because they wanted room for the surfboards, wet suits and more. It has space for cooking lamb shanks, socialising and sleeping. You can enter the van both from the front and the back.

I really like the idea of this van. It would be fun to travel for a few months from place to place, do what there is to do, see what there is to see and then move on. This would adapt well to hiking, climbing, via ferrata and other sports. It allows you to live comfortably without spending money on hotels, villas or other places.

The project cost them around 10,000 dollars to build so if you work and save up for a few months you could easily take a gap year and afford to do such a project. Working on such a project does require some skills in wood working. He said that it took hundreds, if not thousands of hours to prepare the van. If you’re travelling then a few steps a day for a few weeks would get to this final result.

At one moment they speak about the herb garden that they have in the glove box. As they had the space they planted some mint and other herbs for cooking. As a result of this herb garden they said that when driving on rough roads the Mint plant gets shaken about and in the process the van smells of mint. It’s a natural air freshener.

In a month they will move on and sell the van to continue travelling. If I was travelling to New Zealand I’d like to try living in a van like this and use it as a base to go hiking, climbing and enjoying other sports. This seems like a pleasant way of travelling.

 

The Klettersteig Rider 3.0
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The Klettersteig Rider 3.0

Byrichard

The Klettersteig Rider 3.0 is a dual system via ferrata kit. It has a carabiner like standard via ferrata kits have and a “rider” system. The “rider” system fixes to the via ferrata cable and progresses with you. As you get to a part where you need to switch you move the rider system up first and then you move the carabiner. 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmmXodEZQxo


What I like about this system is that if you slip or lose grip of the rungs for any reason you will only fall the length of the connector rather than the length from where you are to the most recent pig tail. This reduces the fall distance by a considerable amount. 


The Via Ferrata where I would most like such a system is Leukerbad. On the Leukerbad Via Ferrata when you get to the last third there are few handholds so you rely on finger and arm strength to progress and you get tired. With this system you would relieve that strain to some extent. It would make me feel more at ease. 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXR1a-sFeS0


At 229 CHF from at least one online shop this kit is expensive. You can get Via Ferrata sets for between 60-115 CHF as a beginner. This kit is interesting for people who, like me, have practised Via Ferrata for years and use their kits every weekend in summer. Via Ferrata sets can last for years so if you estimate that you will use it from 3-5 years the price is acceptable. 


An alternative is the Austrialpin Hydra via ferrata set. It’s 60 CHF cheaper but you only block on the cable when you need a rest rather than continuously. The third option, and the most used option is a sling with a carabiner. This is also the cheapest option.  

The Illusion That The Pandemic Is Over
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The Illusion That The Pandemic Is Over

Byrichard

Switzerland is living under the illusion that the pandemic is over. If you look at the data on the RTS website and other sources of information such as Cotrack – Grafana then the pandemic is over. The number of new cases has gone done so if you look at the metrics then it is over.


There is a good chance that this is an illusion, demonstrated in three ways. The first of these is the number and saturation of hospitals now, with many of them overloaded and in a situation of crisis. The second indicator that things are not fine is the increased mortality for years, at this point. The third indicator is that people with COVID compromised immune systems might have stopped testing positive for COVID but there is a lag between when someone stops testing positive for COVID and when their immune system has fully recovered from the disease, able to combat other illnesses that would otherwise have little or no effect.


They charge for COVID tests. They no longer test sewage for traces of the disease. They tell people that the pandemic is over, and then they provide data that gives this illusion.


Two things bother me about this situation. The first is that I don’t trust that the pandemic is over. If we had frequent tests, and everyone was testing positive then I would trust that the pandemic is over. The second is that by not having data that proves that the pandemic is over I will keep wearing a mask when I am indoors and keeping my distance outside of people in my family, or that I am staying with.


Graphic from RTS insinuating that the pandemic is over.


Information for the Canton De Vaud, 44 tests, 4 positive, 9 percent positivity.


At the start of the pandemic there was a thing that said “the pandemic will be over when we have zero transmission for two weeks”. We are not at that stage yet. We are also at a nine percent positivity rate. That’s four percentage points higher than the five percent required for a situation to be considered under control. In reality I don’t need to be confused. When I see 0 new cases for two weeks, and the test percentage is down to 0 then I can consider removing the mask.

Mischievous Shoelaces

Mischievous Shoelaces

Byrichard

Today I went for a run earlier than usual and had to deal with mischievous shoelaces. They decided to come undone at least three times during the first three kilometres before I finally got them to behave.


I went for a run earlier than usual because rain is forecast for this afternoon and if I go after lunch then I get rained on. I prefer not to run in the rain, if I can avoid it.


It rained anyway, but light rain. The type that doesn’t soak your clothes and you down to the bone. It was rain that is noticed, but doesn’t stick around. It evaporates by the time you’re done with the run.


Today’s run was meant to be a 5.6km run and I did run most of the distance, except for the three stops to retie shoe laces, and a short walk when I felt I didn’t have much energy after yet another climb. A run that should have taken half an hour took fourty minutes. I did not feel as energetic as sometimes and this wasn’t helped by having to stop and start a few times.


I’m on week 11 of 12 of this training program so when next week is done I will be able to try another training program. The aim will still be 5k, but with a better time.


And Finally


I am trying to develop a running habit but I still don’t enjoy it. I still struggle to run the required distance. With cycling I struggle to go at a certain speed, or over a specific distance but I don’t find it as hard. Walking comes naturally to me. I don’t struggle. Walking and cycling feel natural. I haven’t reached that, with cycling. The day that I can daydream whilst running is the day that I will have achieved my goal.


WordPress and Strava – Using WP Strava on this blog

Byrichard

I installed WP Strava on this blog to share my Strava cycling and running activity. At the time of this blog post you can see my most recent bike rides in the left column as well as the most recent map. With a minimum of code you can also include your bike rides within a post like you see below. You write activity id=number of activity and the ride will be integrated within your blog posts without the need for embed codes and an iframe.

This is useful for activity bloggers such as myself. The code is simple and easy to remember, as soon as I find the right keyboard keys to avoid the need to copy and paste. Shortcodes are to add information to blog posts and the widgets are for the side bar.

SHORTCODES

activity id=NUMBER – add to any page or post. Also takes the following
optional parameters:

  • som – english/metric (system of measure – override from default setting)
  • map_width – width (width of image in pixels)
  • map_height – height (height of image in pixels)

WIDGETS

Strava Latest Rides – shows a list of the last few activities

Strava Latest Map – shows map of latest activity with option to limit
latest map to activities of a certain minimum distance

Limitations

It would be nice for the maps that are included within posts to be zoomable, so that we can look at the details of the bike ride and see information for specific segments. This functionality is available on the website but there is no easy link to the strava posts. It’s an advantage because it’s native to your site but it’s a shame if you’re trying to grow a strava following. For that functionality you need the widget.

Overall it’s a quick and simple solution to add Strava maps and ride/run data to your blog post. You can then add images and a textual description to complement the map.

Geneva Tweetup during the LIFT09 Conference – Who’s Interested?

Byrichard

One of my biggest frustrations at the moment as a user of twitter is that I can’t meet with the people I chat with on a regular basis. As a result of this I am trying to find as many Geneva based twitter users as possible to organise a tweetup.

There are two options, the first is to do it at the same time as twestival but that is one event that I personally want to have nothing to do with. I was disappointed by the lack of enthusiasm that people at that event had for twitter. As a result I would prefer not to repeat that experience.

What has been suggested by Sandrine is a tweetup at the same time as the LIFT09 conference is taking place in Geneva.

For those that are not familiar with LIFT09:

Lift09 (Geneva, 25-27 Feb. 09) will look back to look ahead, exploring topics like change, solidarity, love, or design, during three days of intense networking and inspiration themed around a simple question: “Where did the future go?”

This means that quite a number of the social media scene, innovators and more should be present. As a result it will be more practical for those living in other cities.

At the same time Geneva is an international city. From the airport down to the Palais Wilson on one side and the UN plage on the other you have a multitude of International organisations. It would be an interesting opportunity to see how the International community could use and take advantage of such a simple yet ubiquitous form of communication.

Geneva based twitter users.

If you’re interested in this event just leave a comment below with your twitter username and let’s see what we can organise. You may also want to join the Switzerland tweetup group on facebook

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